The Way Life Goes
by tumblingthru
Summary: Beca and Chloe married twenty years post-Barden with children with real life issues - follow the journey. Lovechild!Emily/OC heavy, but a lot of Beca/Chloe loving/being adorable parents.
1. The Home They Built

**A/n:** Hi, I'm tumblingthru, like that's my user name and I'm usually tumbling through somewhere. I'm writing this story about a Bechloe family. Emily from the franchise is their lovechild because that seems like a cute thing and three other kids that are made up because this idea came to me in the middle of a work meeting, so why not?

 **Rating/Trigger Warning:** So as you see this is rated M for mature. That's because in this story I'm going to be talking a lot about sexual things, mental health things that could possibly be mention of suicide, and drug things. So it just felt fitting because I know that triggers some people and I don't want to be the cause of someone being triggered, y'know? I'll post a trigger warning above every chapter that I do - like briefly in this intro chapter.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the Pitch Perfect characters, but I do own the OCs and the plotline, so yeah. Also, while this is Bechloe, this is Emily/OC heavy too. Just a heads up!

* * *

 **Chapter One: The Home They Built**

 _"I thought if I could touch this place or feel it  
This brokenness inside me might start healing. _  
_Out here it's like I'm someone else._  
 _I thought that maybe I could find myself_  
 _If I could just come in, I swear I'll leave_  
 _Won't take nothing but a memory from the house that built me."  
"The House That Built Me" - Miranda Lambert_

Beca Mitchell-Beale was living the American Dream. She was a successful music producer of her own record label. She was married to the love of her life Chloe Mitchell-Beale. She had what she said 3.5 kids: Greyson, 25, Emily, 17, Brendan, 15, and Abby, 13. Greyson Beale was her point five child. When Beca and Chloe got together, the redhead was in the midst of a breakup from Tom. Chloe had him 80% of the time when the boy was growing up. He and Beca never had the closest of relationships in the 20 years that she and Chloe had been together, but they tried to please the redhead who just wanted family unity. Chloe was the headmaster at the private academy that all the Mitchell-Beale children attended, where Greyson graduated from. She started as a music teacher out of her credential program and then worked her way up to become the headmaster. She loved what she did. She loved making decisions to help the students of MacArthur Academy thrive into their fullest of potentials.

Greyson was a communications director for Senator Danielle Taylor, who happened to be a republican and that caused a huge tension between Greyson and Beca that went somewhat unnoticed by the Mitchell-Beale family. He graduated from MacArthur Preparatory Academy and then went to UCLA and studied political science and communication studies. He was currently getting his masters degree in public policy. He was a bit of a mommy's boy - always catering to Chloe's needs which made Beca happy that the boy would still choose to be part of the family. He lives in their basement and does what he can to help out around the house.

Emily was a 17 year old high school senior. She lived the typical teenage girl life. Head of the cheerleading squad, average A/B student grade wise, had a boyfriend that both Beca and Greyson hated (because in their mind _no one_ was good enough for the girl), and she loved her family. A bit of a mama's girl - always going to Beca when things went wrong and had a small estranged relationship with Chloe. The two fought often putting Beca in between her wife and their oldest daughter - never knowing which side to choose because she wanted both of them happy.

Brendan was a 15 year old sophomore at MacArthur Academy. Being the third child to his mom and second non-stepchild to his mama, he tried his best to keep them both happy. He looked up to his big brother Greyson a whole lot heading down a similar yet different path than the communications director. Both played football for the academy and both were protective of their siblings, but Brendan had a secret drug problem. He managed to pass the drug tests in order to play sports, but he never wanted to be like anyone in his family. He didn't want to go to college, so he wasn't working towards it, he didn't want to do anything with his life. He hid his addiction problems from his family. He knew it would disappoint him and didn't want to see that look on their faces.

Abby was a 13 year old eighth grader. She was shy, innocent, and nerdy. She looked up to her three older siblings. Greyson for his grace, strength, and hard work ethic. Emily for her popularity and love for family. And Brendan for his soft protectiveness. She was highly involved with the STEM program at MacArthur Prep and she loved anything to do with engineering. She didn't have a lot of friends outside of the program at the academy, but she didn't mind. She loved spending her free time, cuddling with one of her moms, and reading some kind of book that would look to Beca like some kind of foreign language. It annoyed her sometimes how protective her siblings and Beca were with her, but she loved how much they cared.

* * *

Beca woke up on a Friday morning to, let's just call it, chaos. She looked over to where he wife of 20 years would've been sleeping, but wasn't and she takes it by the cold bedsheets next to her that the redhead had been up for awhile. The music producer pushes down the covers and sheets to see where the chaos was coming from. She walks out to see Emily and Brendan were arguing in the hallway, Chloe and Abby are nowhere to be found.

"Is there a reason why you two are arguing at 6:15 in the morning?" Beca asked. The two started arguing again, something about how after Abby got out of the shower someone was supposed to get in. Beca suddenly regrets coming out here and asking a question.

"Okay, okay," Chloe said coming into the hallway, still in her pajamas, but has a cup of coffee in her hand, "one of you grab your stuff and go into my and Mama's bathroom, okay?" The arguing continued and Chloe cut in again, "Brendan, just go get your stuff and go into my and Mama's bathroom to get ready, okay?" The teenage boy huffed, but did as he was told, and got his stuff and was grumbling down the hallway, Emily stepped into the bathroom.

Beca and Chloe looked at each other for the first time that morning and smiled, Beca opened up her arms for Chloe to step into. The redhead smiled and stepped into her arms, "Good morning love," the headmaster said.

"Good morning beautiful," Beca said kissing the top of her head. "Is there more coffee downstairs?"

"I think so," she said. "Greyson made a full pot."

"He's up already?" Beca asked still hugging Chloe tight.

"Yeah," Chloe said, "he and I just had breakfast together."

"I think it's cute that you two have breakfast together every morning." Beca said.

Beca felt Chloe smile in her chest, "I know I have three more, but he's my baby." She said. "He got me through half of the darkness after Tom left." She said.

"Who or what got you through the other half?" Beca asked.

Chloe looked up at her and whispered, "you" before kissing her.

* * *

Beca walked downstairs to get coffee, seeing Greyson sitting there in a suit that he wears to work reading something on his iPad while drinking coffee. The music producer always bantered with the boy who was always back and forth between his mom and dad. She knew that he saw her as his stepmom, he didn't have to tell her, because she knew. Not in the way he treated her because even with the banter and tension between the two, he always treated her with the utmost respect, something that she always gave the man in front of her a lot of credit for. She knew he saw her as a stepmom in the way he still called her by her name and the way that he didn't tell Chloe about things going on with Tom and his new wife and children.

"Good morning kiddo," she greeted him.

"Morning Beca," he said looking up from his iPad, "there's still coffee left, don't worry."

"How did you even know?" Beca asked with a smile.

Greyson shrugged, "I like to think that I know you pretty well." He said with a smile.

Beca smiled, "Yeah," she said pouring herself coffee. "Did you sleep well?"

He nodded, "Yes'm. Yourself?" He asked doing something on his iPad.

Beca took a sip of coffee, "Sure did. Always do with your mom in my arms." She said.

Just then Abby walked downstairs in her school uniform, "Morning," she said.

"Morning munchkin," Greyson said as she hugged her big brother. "How are you?"

"I'm alright, missed you at dinner last night." She said still hugging her big brother.

"Yeah, sorry, the senator had me working kind of late last night for our big announcement today." He said. "But, I'll be at Brendan's game tonight, I promise."

Abby smiled brightly, "Cool," she said letting go of her brother. "Morning Mama." She said hugging Beca.

Beca kissed the top of the girl's head, "Morning baby girl." She said. "Sleep well?"

Abby nodded, "Sure did." She said still hugging her mama.

"You okay?" Beca asked. "You're a little more touchy feely this morning."

Abby shrugged, "Just wanted some mama love this morning is all," she said.

Beca kissed the top of her head again, "I love you, baby girl." She whispered.

"I love you too, Mama." The girl whispered back.

Beca looked up to see Greyson looking down at his iPad ignoring the mama-daughter exchange in front of them, in a way giving them space without leaving the room. She smiled because even though there's a bit of professional tension between the two of them because of the woman he worked for, he still respected and loved her.

* * *

Emily walked into school with Brendan behind her texting on his phone. Abby had gone with Chloe that morning leaving the two arguing siblings in the same car. Emily and Brendan were once close - growing up with Greyson being eight and ten years older than them, for awhile all they had was each other, but something changed when Brendan got into high school. He started to play sports and withdraw from the family. Emily didn't like the people he hung out with - he hung out with mainly the baseball team and they seemed like a weird bunch of athletes and the cheerleader didn't like them. She definitely didn't like her younger brother hanging out with them, but any time she would tell him that, he would roll his eyes and shrug it off.

"I'll see you at football practice, Em." He said not looking up from his phone heading in the other direction.

"Okay," Emily said looking at him wander in the direction towards his locker. "Have a good day, B." She tried and he just waved her off. Emily took a deep breath. She walked in the direction towards her locker where her best guy friend Benji was waiting for her. "Hi Benji."

"Hey Emily," the boy said. "How are you?"

"I'm good, thanks," she said looking in the direction of where Brendan went off too. "How are you?"

"Good," he said. "Hey, is Mike okay? He's been a little out of it lately."

Mike Swanson was Emily's boyfriend. He wasn't the star of the football team, he actually played on the line, she didn't quite understand why her mama and older brother hated him because he was one of the genuinely sweet guys on the team and her mom absolutely _adored_ him. When they got together, he made friends with Benji because the boy standing concerned about him in front of Emily right now, had helped her get through a lot in her life. Mike was going through a lot though, his parents were splitting up, and he was trying to keep his siblings from falling apart, but Emily thought that was his story to tell.

"He's just going through a lot." Emily said. "Nothing to be too worried about. I'm sure he'll want to tell you himself."

Benji nodded, "I'll reach out to him and see if he wants to play video games or something soon." He smiled.

Emily smiled back because that's just something Benji would do, he cares for everyone in his life, and just wants them to be as okay as okay can be in their situation. Emily squeezes the boy shoulder, something that she unknowingly picked up from her mom, "That sounds great, Benji, I'm sure he'll appreciate that." She said as he smiled.

Just then Mike comes up to the both of them, greeting Emily with a small kiss and Benji with a fist bump, "Hey," Mike said.

"Hey baby," Emily said hugging him.

"Hey Mike," Benji said. "We were actually just talking about you."

Mike chuckled, "Good things, I hope." He said.

"Always," Emily said looking at Benji encouraging him to ask Mike to play video games.

"I was just saying that it seems like you're going through a lot and I'd love to play video games or something with you soon to help get your mind off of it." Benji offered.

Mike smiled gratefully at his friend, "I'd really like that, Benji. Tomorrow? I'll bring the root beer and other snacks." He asked.

Benji nodded, "Yes, of course." He said. "I'm looking forward to it. I'll be at your game tonight to support you two."

"Awesome," the couple said at the same time as the first bell rang.

"Well, I better get to class now." Benji said. "See you both at lunch."

Benji walked away leaving Emily to quickly get her books from her locker and shutting it fast. She grabbed Mike's hand as they walked down the hallway towards their homeroom, "How's everything going at home?" Emily carefully asked.

Mike sighed and rubbed his face roughly with his free hand, "Rough. They're really at each other's throats." He said. "It'll be nice to have day away at Benji's."

"I'm so sorry baby." Emily said. "I can't imagine what that's like. I've been so lucky to have two moms who love each other so much that it's kind of gross. I don't want to imagine them apart."

"And yet, you treat your mom like shit," he mused somewhat playfully.

Emily rolled her eyes, she knew that her relationship with her mom wasn't the greatest and sometimes put her mama in awkward situations and Mike was the only person that knew why. She and Mike had been put in a project together and they got to know each other really well. It turned into having crushes on one another and then eventually love. He saw how she treated her mom - ignored her on campus at all costs and kind of did the same at home. Mike knew that Emily was hurt by Chloe because the girl was under the insane impression that her mom thought she was dumb because she didn't get grades like Greyson did and Abby is. Brendan didn't care, but Emily was hurt by the notion that because she got a few Bs in classes that weren't easy for her that Chloe would compare her to her older brother and younger sister.

"She doesn't treat me any better." Emily defended in a mumble. "You know that B I got on that chem test?" Mike nodded, "She asked if Abby could help me in the areas that I missed." Pause. " _Abby_. My 13 year old sister. It's like me getting a B isn't good enough. At least I'm passing. Brendan gets Bs and Cs all the time and she gets on him about it, but he just doesn't seem to care."

"I mean, you are her children and this is the best preparatory academy in the Western Hemisphere which she's the headmaster at. I guess she just wants to present to the world that her children actually care about school." He said as they stopped in front of their homeroom. "You gotta cut her some slack. She loves you, babe."

Emily stared at her boyfriend and realized that he was right. She didn't want him to be right - hell, she wanted him to side with her, but he was right. She doesn't give Chloe enough credit.

* * *

Brendan was sitting at lunch in the back corner of campus with a group of his friends. It's the only place on campus to get high without campus security or any teacher or faculty member lurking around. He didn't want to get _too_ high because he did have a game that night, but he wanted to get high enough that the rest of the day would go by quicker. He started getting high the summer between middle school and high school because like Emily, he was tired of being compared to his older brother and his younger sister by his mom when it came to school. However, unlike Emily, he didn't talk about it, he decided to just shove all his emotions down and get high. He definitely ran with the wrong crowd which worried his moms, but he didn't care. He was a second string quarterback on a junior varsity team, there was no way he was getting into college, nor did he want to spend another four years trapped inside a classroom.

"Bro," his friend Billy Hollister said, higher than he was currently, "what's your sister's deal?"

"Emily?" Brendan asked taking a hit off the joint he was smoking.

"Yeah," Billy said, "how many sisters do you have?"

"Two." Brendan said. "My younger sister is at the middle school here. Eighth grade."

"Okay then," Billy said. "What's Emily's deal against us?"

"Yeah man," his friend Josh Adams said, "she glares at us like we've done something horrible to you."

Brendan took another hit off the joint and slowly let it drag out, "She thinks you all are bad influence on me." He said. "My moms do too, but I honestly don't give a fuck."

"That's the way to do it," his friend Jake Ferguson said. "Though, I can imagine Headmaster Mitchell-Beale not liking you getting high."

"Again," Brendan said, "who the fuck cares? As long as I pass those drug tests for football and baseball, I'm good."

* * *

Chloe was sitting in her office working when she got a text from Greyson in the all family ongoing group chat.

 _Greyson: Hey family! I know the kids are in school, but Senator Taylor is about to make an announcement that we hope will change history. [link attached]_

Chloe smiled, she loved that her oldest son was so passionate about his work. He had always had some interest in politics since his freshman year of high school which happened to be a dark period of time for him. Chloe remembered so vividly when he was diagnosed with clinical depression and severe anxiety. It was the day that Chloe, Beca, and Tom's life changed for the better. Greyson had spent a lot of his freshman year lying in bed, sleeping, not eating. A lot of friends had walked away from his during this time, he felt like he was at rock bottom. Getting him out of bed was like pulling teeth, getting him to eat with hard too, and finally Tom's new wife, Rebekah, who was a psychologist recommended for the two parents to get him some kind of help and they did. After the diagnosis, Tom would take the weekends with Greyson more seriously and Chloe would take the weekdays with Greyson equally as seriously.

Chloe opened the CNN link that Greyson had sent: _California US Senator Danielle Taylor is running for President of the United States_ the headline read. Chloe smiled, she had sensed at breakfast that morning that was the big announcement that the senator was going to make because for the first time in a long while, Greyson was genuinely excited about something. The man had just went through a pretty gnarly breakup and was starting to slip back into his depressive ways.

 _Brendan: You do know she's not the first one to run for president, right? There have been many women who have tried and failed._

Chloe rolled her eyes at her youngest son's comment. She was glad that he seemed to be paying attention in his US history class, but she wasn't glad that he had to always rain on his brother's parade.

 _Emily: Way to ruin the moment, B. Tell the senator that I said congratulations!_

 _Beca: Agreed to everything that Em just said. While I may not agree with everything that the senator stands for, this is a step in the RIGHT direction._

 _Abby: Yay for the senator!_

Chloe liked to see that her wife and daughters seemed to be on board with this. She knew that a presidential campaign on Greyson's shoulders was going to be a lot, but she also knew that it would look good on his resume. Something that since before entering high school that Greyson had been working towards.

 _Chloe: We'll be by your side, no matter what happens, baby. Let's celebrate tomorrow because Beca is right, this is a step in the RIGHT direction._

Chloe smiled as there was a knock on her office door, "Come in." She called out. The door opened and she was delighted to see her wife standing there with lunch. "What do I owe this surprise for?"

"I just found myself missing you today and wanted to surprise you." Beca said.

Beca sat down in front of her and Chloe leaned over to give her a kiss, "I love you, Bec." She said.

Beca smiled, "I love you too, Chlo." She said.

Chloe knew that her wife was the best thing that has ever happened to her and Greyson before Emily, Brendan, and Abby. She loved that the music producer goes out of her way to surprise her. She loved the way that Beca loved her. She was grateful that she was spending forever with this nerd.

* * *

 **A/n:** It's just getting started. Stay tuned for more Bechloe loving, family loving, and more. A lot of angst coming your way.


	2. Children Growing Older

**A/n:** Who's ready for some Mitchell-Beale angst?

Also, sorry for the wait: when life hits you square in the face, sometimes you just gotta chill for a moment. I hope for the wait to not become a regular thing, but make no promises.

* * *

 **Chapter Two: Children Growing Older**

 _"Well, I've been afraid of changin'_  
 _'Cause I've built my life around you_  
 _But time makes you bolder_  
 _Even children get older_  
 _And I'm getting older, too"  
"Landslide" -Fleetwood Mac_

Chloe was sitting at the kitchen counter listening to Emily and Brendan arguing about the people that the boy decides to hang out with and Chloe found herself mentally taking her oldest daughter's side. Both Beca and Chloe have questioned his friends since entering high school, but they figured that he can make his own decisions and learn from them. At least, that's what Beca keeps telling Chloe, telling her the horror stories of high school Beca Mitchell and how her parents thought her friends weren't the greatest of influences, but she had to learn that for herself.

"Do you even care about what hanging out with them can do to your future?" Emily asked. "They're only at MacArthur because their parents can afford to send them there, they don't care."

"What makes you think I care about what _you_ think about my friends?" Brendan shot back. "You're friends don't exactly walk on water either."

"My friends don't choose to ditch class and get high either," Emily argued, making Chloe's eyebrows shoot up into her hairline.

"My friends don't do that," Brendan lied. "You don't know them like I do Emily. You don't see me making fun of you for dating, Swanson or hanging out with Benji. Even though both of those guys have their imperfections. Lay off."

"I'm not going to lay off," Emily said. "I saw them all in the back corner of campus cutting class, breaking uniform code, and getting high."

"Why are you lurking around in back campus anyway? You aren't a sophomore anymore." Brendan shot back.

"I was looking for _you_ ," Emily said. "I wanted us to have lunch together since we have the same lunch hour this year, like we used to."

"We haven't had lunch together since elementary school," he said. "Why does it matter now?"

"I'm worried about you," she said, almost crying.

"There's nothing for you to be worried about," Brendan said, clearly ending the conversation.

It was too quiet for Chloe's liking so she got up and went into the living room and saw Emily sitting there with her head in her hands. She knows how protective of her siblings that this girl was. She and Greyson protected Brendan and Abby more combined that Beca ever could. Chloe knew that her relationship with the girl currently in front of her wasn't great, she knew that for whatever reason the girl wasn't fond of her and was definitely a mama's girl. She debated in her head whether or not to just wait until Beca got home from the studio and tell the music producer to talk to her, but when she saw Emily's shoulders shake, she thought otherwise.

"Is everything okay in here?" Chloe said to make her presence known.

Emily looked up at her mother, she wanted to say, _no_. She wanted to let her mother in, but then she was reminded that part of her problems were with the redhead. She was reminded about that morning how this mother was the one that got on her about her B- in Pre-Calculus. She was reminded that this could be the reason why Brendan is being so distant, she was reminded of everything, and then she decided to say, "Everything's fine, Mom" before getting up and leaving the room.

Chloe stood there confused, she thought she had her moment, did she see something that wasn't there? Why was Emily not talking to her? Maybe she should send Beca in to see what's wrong.

* * *

The family was sitting around the table eating dinner when Greyson came running in, "I'm so sorry that I'm late." He said. "Things are crazy at work right now."

"Understandable," Beca said. "How's the campaign going?"

Greyson rolled his eyes, "It's a nightmare right now, but we'll manage." He said. "Hi Mom." He said hugging Chloe and kissing her temple.

"Hi baby," Chloe said hugging him back. "You okay? You seem tense."

"Just stressed at work." He said. "Maybe I can get a backrub after dinner?"

Chloe kissed his cheek, "Of course baby." She said. "How was your day, baby?"

Greyson sat down in his usual seat between his sisters and loosened his tie, "It was alright. Busy. How about everyone else's?" He asked dishing himself food.

Beca and the other kids mumbled out a _good_ and Chloe actually gave him a longer answer, "It was good," she said. "Abby you wanna tell big brother what happened to you today?" She asked their youngest.

The girl's face lit up in excitement, "The middle school STEM team is going to regionals." Abby said excitedly.

Greyson's face lit up, knowing how hard she and the team worked, he watched as she stayed up late some nights trying to get the robot to do what they wanted to do and watched as she stressed out over it. He spent many nights holding her close as she cried into him, questioning on whether or not she was cut out for this. He spent many nights reassuring her that everything she was doing the right thing and that sometimes you have to get over one hurdle to get to the destination.

Greyson lifted his hand up for a high five, "Congratulations, munchkin." He said. "So proud of you." Greyson then wrapped his arm tightly around her shoulders as she cuddled into him for a hug. They stayed that way for a moment, the rest of the family focused on their food as the oldest and youngest child had their moment. When the moment was over he then turned to his other siblings and said, "So, what's new on the MacArthur Prep front, high school addition?" He asked.

Both Emily and Brendan shrugged, the two high school students still weren't talking to each other after the argument that happened earlier in the day, "Same 'ol, same 'ol." Emily responded from them both. "Too much homework assigned for multiple classes with too soon of a deadline, but we'll live."

"How's Mike doing?" Chloe asked making both her wife and oldest son roll their eyes at the name. "I know things must be hard for him right now with Jesse and Aubrey splitting up."

"Wait," Greyson said, "they're splitting up?!"

Jesse and Aubrey were Greyson's godparents and he was taken off guard with the revelation that they were splitting up. He had been in contact with them both recently, but neither one of them dropped that news on him. The man knew he was busy at work as his boss was running for the position of leader of the free world, but his godparents would tell him that they were splitting up, right? He was a little hurt that this revelation was being told to him by his mom and not by his godparents.

Chloe's face deflated a little, "I'm sorry, honey." She said. "I thought they told you already."

Greyson shook his head, "No, we've been texting in the group chat thing we set up so that I can tell them things that are going on in my life, but they never said anything." He said. The man then turned to Emily, "How _is_ Mike doing? And Lilly, Taylor, and Felicity? Are they okay?"

Emily looked at her older brother with a confused look, she knew that this man gave her a lot of grief for dating his godbrother and she knew it was because _no one_ would be good enough for her and normally that would annoy her, but she could imagine finding out that your godparents are getting a divorce from your mom is hard news to swallow, so she quickly softened her face, "They're as okay as they can be in the situation. I'm sure they'd love to hear from you, as much as you pretend not to like Mike, they all look up to you as an older brother figure."

Greyson nodded and took his phone out of his pocket and quickly sent a text message to all of his godsiblings:

 _Greyson: Hi Swanson siblings, just want you to know that I just found out about the parents. I'm SO sorry that I haven't been around to know sooner. Please know that I'm here for anything. You just have to let me know._

"I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now," Beca said with a soft voice. "What the Swanson kids are feeling."

"They've actually been better than most kids in this situation," Chloe said. "Well, at least from a headmaster standpoint."

Greyson took a deep breath and took a small bite of his food. The conversation changed to a different subject, but the communications director wasn't paying attention just thinking about his godfamily that seemed to be falling apart, and he couldn't do a damn thing about it. He started taking on unnecessary responsibility for not checking in with them when they sent random text messages with them. Not asking further questions when they said that they were just _okay_. His thought were then interrupted by a series of four text messages from his godbrother and godsisters.

 _Felicity: I mean, when my boss decides to run for President of the United States, I'll understand better, but thank you, Grey._

 _Lilly: We love you, godbrother. No hard feelings._

 _Taylor: Can we get froyo soon all five of us? Like we used to?_

 _Mike: I second Taylor's proposition. Also, does this mean you like me again? I know I'll never be good for Em in your and Beca's eyes, but can this be a start?_

 _Greyson: Yes! Froyo soon. And maybe Mike. ;)_

Greyson smiled as he read this messages. He never disliked Mike as much as he came off as he did, but Emily and Abby were his little sisters and he gets protective of them both and relationships are a lot of give and take and he didn't trust anyone with his little sisters, but _maybe_ he can trust Micheal Swanson.

 _Maybe._

* * *

Greyson was pacing back and forth in his room after dinner, he was debating on whether or not to call one of his godparents and asked them why they didn't tell him. He was hurt because the two were always so communicative with him, but somehow this big, life changing thing was happening for the Swanson family and they decide now to stop communicating? He took a deep breath and dialed his godfather's number first.

 _"Hey champ," Jesse said while answering._

"Hey Uncle Jesse," he said softly. "How are you?"

 _"I'm okay." He said softly. "How are you? How's the campaign?"_

Greyson smiled at the small talk, "It's going okay, stressing me out a ton." He said.

 _"Well, don't let it stress you out too much." The man said. "I'd love to grab drinks soon."_

"Me too," he said as silence filled the phone. "Listen, I called because I found out some interesting news about you and Aunt Aubrey this evening at dinner."

 _Jesse sighed, "We were GOING to tell you, I promise. Things just got too busy with all three of us." He said. "I'm really sorry."_

Greyson took a soft approach, "It's really fine, unk. I promise you. May I ask what happened?" He asked. "I know things were rough..."

 _Jesse took a deep breath, "Yeah, things have been rough. She started shutting me out after losing Danny. And at first, I thought it was because she was grieving and then she started blaming herself for losing him, but things never got better after that."_

Greyson had tears in his eyes, it had been awhile since he had heard that name. Daniel "Danny" Swanson was the fifth child of Jesse and Aubrey. He lived five short years before dying of leukemia just four years before. While the entire Swanson and Mitchell-Beale families were hurt by the loss, both Aubrey and Greyson took it the hardest - Aubrey more so than Greyson, but the pain still was there any time his name was brought up.

Greyson didn't realize the emotions in his voice until he said, "I'm sorry, Uncle Jesse." He said. "I really am."

 _Jesse took a deep breath, "I'm sorry, I know that hearing that name is still hard for you too." He said._

The communications director cleared his throat, "No, no. It's fine." He said. "I'm sorry. I just got really attached to him."

 _"Yeah," Jesse said amused. "You were his favorite too."_

Greyson sighed and ran his hand roughly on his face, "Should I call Aunt Aubrey? To see how she's doing?" He asked. "I'm now really worried about her."

 _"I'm sure she'd love to hear from you," the man on the other line said. "She DOES miss you. I know things are busy for you right now."_

"Is she still at the house or...?" He trailed off.

 _"No actually," he said. "She's been staying with her sister. She felt that since she's the one the asked for it, it was only fair that I didn't leave."_

He nodded forgetting that his godfather couldn't see him, "Okay," he said. "I, umm, I, sorry. I literally found out through my mom at dinner tonight."

 _"We should've told you ourselves." He said. "I'm sorry you had to find out that way."_

"It's fine," he said as Chloe came down into his room, "I'm gonna go now, I'll call Aunt Aubrey in a little bit and check on her. I just needed a moment to process it. Thanks for answering my call, Uncle Jesse."

 _"You know I'll always answer your call, champ." He said. "Thank you for calling. I'm serious about getting drinks soon."_

"I'll text you and let you know when I'm free. I know I'm traveling with the senator soon." He said as he sat down and Chloe started rubbing his shoulders. They said their goodbyes and he hung up and took a deep breath, relaxing into his mother's touch. "That feels good, Mom. Thanks." He acknowledged her.

"Of course, baby." She said. "I'm sorry that you had to find out about your Uncle Jesse and Aunt Aubrey through me, I really thought they told you already."

"It's fine," he said. "I shouldn't be so involved in my work, y'know?"

"You love what you do," Chloe said. "I'm grateful for that."

And Chloe really was grateful because Greyson had come a long way since high school where he would lie in bed depressed all the time or think about dying. He wasn't a dramatic kid and most of the time, Chloe wouldn't notice that he was lying around all the time not saying much until the summer between his junior and senior years of high school where he was with Tom for the weekend and his depression hit an all time low and he tried to take his own life. Both she and Tom got him into therapy immediately and he seemed to work out whatever was causing his immediate depression and while he still had depressive episodes now and then, he knows how to cope with them better.

"Thanks Ma," he said. "I love you."

Chloe smiled, "I love you too, baby boy." She said pulling him into her, kissing the top of his head.

* * *

Chloe slipped into bed next to Beca that night and cuddled into her. The headmaster loved curling into the music producer at night just talking about their days. Sometimes these were the moments that were the best about Chloe's day. Her heart was definitely heavy that evening. First with the conversation she overheard between Emily and Brendan and then had with Emily and then second followed by inadvertently telling her oldest son that his godparents are divorcing. She was putting lotion on her legs when she felt Beca come up behind her, kissing her shoulder. "Hi baby," the headmaster said.

"Hi beautiful," Beca said softly. "Everything okay?" Chloe shrugged as she continued to put lotion on her legs and let out a small sigh. Beca knew what this meant and embraced her wife from behind, "What's wrong baby?" She asked softly as Chloe turned to cuddled into her. The headmaster just lied in her wife's arms for a moment, "I want to help you, love, but I can't do that if you don't tell me how."

Chloe took a shaky deep breath, "I feel like a shitty mom." She said softly, almost on the verge of crying. "I told my son about his godparents splitting up." She said as Beca played with red hair, letting her wife vent. "And our oldest daughter doesn't want to tell me stuff, but I mean, that's normal. Especially since she's a mama's girl anyway." Beca kissed the top of her wife's head, "And now I'm just trying to figure things out. There's something going on with B." Chloe sighed. "None of the kids are talking to me in the way I need them to."

Beca was playing with Chloe's hair just letting her wife vent, she knew that her wife needed to let everything out before she started talking. It's the game this couple played: Chloe would vent out what she needed to and then Beca would _try_ to help her wife see the other side of it. It started after Tom came back into Greyson's life when the boy was nine years old. Both Chloe and Tom had two different parenting styles and she would be frustrated with her ex fiancé when it came to his very loose parenting style with their shared son. Chloe would vent, Beca would see it from Tom's point of view. At first, that would annoy Chloe because _why was her wife taking her EX'S side?_ But, then Chloe found the value in it.

It got quiet for a moment and Beca took that as her cue to start talking, "Well, for one, you did think that Jesse and Aubrey told Greyson, so that one isn't on you. They should've told him sooner, you can't take the blame for something that _isn't_ your fault." Beca kissed the top of her wife's head, "And two, you know, you put a lot of pressure on Emily and Brendan."

Chloe looked up at her wife, confused at what she meant, "What's _that_ supposed to mean?" She asked defensively.

Beca took a deep breath and kissed her wife's forehead, mentally beating herself up for having it come out the way it did, "I didn't- I mean-" she stopped herself and took a deep breath, something that she had learned in therapy a few years before when she got flustered. Once she collected her thoughts, she said, "I just watch their faces when they talked about test scores and how you talked to them compared to how you talk to Abby about hers or used to talk to Greyson about his. Greyson and Abby are two of the smartest people I know when it comes to academics, but in the defense of Emily and Brendan, I don't think it's fair that you expect them to be like Greyson and Abby. We have four extremely different kids."

Chloe began thinking about how she treated all four of her kids and sighed when she realized that she did hold Emily and Brendan to Greyson and Abby's high standard. It wasn't her intention, but she knew she had a lot of work ahead of her to gain the trust back of her two middle children. "You're right." She said, feeling like a horrible mother.

Beca held Chloe close, "It doesn't make you a shitty mother either, babe. You just gotta be easier on them. Especially since, y'know, it took you three extra years to pass Russian Lit at Barden." She joked making the redhead gently hit her stomach.

The couple spent the rest of the night cuddling with each other, enjoying the other's presence. It may have been a stressful evening, but the love that these two have for each other was what calms them down into the evening.

* * *

 **A/n:** This is the calm before the storm - it's about to get real.


	3. Holding On & Letting Go

**A/n:** The next four chapters are going to be focused on each child with their parents. We're going to be diving into their lives a bit and getting deeper sense of inside who they are.

First up, the oldest, Greyson Beale.

This chapter may seem rough and rushed, but the next several chapters are setting up the rest of the story.

 **Trigger warning:** Mentions of suicide and suicide attempts in this chapter.

* * *

 **Chapter Three: Holding On & Letting Go**

 _"I'm holding on_  
 _Why is everything so heavy?_  
 _Holding on_  
 _So much more than I can carry_  
 _I keep dragging around what's bringing me down_  
 _If I just let go, I'd be set free_  
 _Holding on_  
 _Why is everything so heavy?" -Linkin Park ft. Kiiara_

Greyson considered himself a blessed man, he had a undergraduate degree and was working on his master's. He had a good job that paid him really well with benefits. He had four parents that supported him through everything, five siblings that loved him no matter what, a godbrother that insisted that dating his sister was cool and he was getting used to that, three godsisters who looked up to him like his siblings did, and two godparents that he just found out are getting a divorce. So, his life wasn't perfect, but he still considered himself blessed that he was alive and breathing. He was currently sitting in a diner on the outskirts of Los Angeles waiting to have breakfast with his godmother. He felt really bad that he hadn't been around for the Swanson family recently and even though both the Swanson's and the Mitchell-Beale's keep reminding him that his job right now was to get the first female president of the United States of America elected, he still felt guilty.

Aubrey walked into the diner with a small smile, she loved spending one-on-one time with her godson. She and Jesse were just dating when he was born. She was the first person outside of Chloe and Tom's families who got to hold him. She fell in love with him instantly and knew that he had a bright future ahead of him. She loved him as if he were her own son, she was there when Tom had abruptly left, and cuddled with him at night. She was there when Beca came into the picture and the boy was confused about what the music producer would be in his life. The blonde was proud of the communications director, when he had grown interest in politics his freshman year of high school, she encouraged him to pursue it as a career. Aubrey was one of Greyson's biggest cheerleaders and the young man looked up to the woman in ways he couldn't even begin to describe.

When she reached the table, Greyson stood up and hugged her tightly, "Hi baby." She murmured. He held her in the hug for a moment. Aubrey didn't mind, she needed this hug more than the man needed to give it.

He pulled back and said, "Hi Aunt Aubrey. How are you?"

The two had danced around the topic of her and Jesse's divorce through text messages, the blonde knew that the man knew about the divorce because Chloe had called her and Jesse, separately, to apologize. The separated couple were super understanding and everyone agreed that Jesse and Aubrey should've told Greyson sooner, so there were no hard feelings. However, feelings were hard for Aubrey and Greyson to do together, Jesse was the one that always seemed to draw the feelings out them.

She hung her head, "I've been better." She said as they both sat down. "I know that you know that I asked your Uncle Jesse for a divorce."

Greyson nodded his head, "I do know that and I'm sorry." He said. "How are you doing with the separation?"

Aubrey shrugged as their normal waitress came and put coffee down in front of them, "I dunno," she mumbled behind her cup. "I miss him and the kids, but I know that the kids are sick of us arguing."

Greyson took a deep breath and really looked at his godmother. She looked pale and like she hadn't been eating as much as she should. He began to worry about his godmother. "How can I help you?" He asked. That was all he could do, ask the woman what he could do to help. Aubrey shrugged, she didn't want her depression to ruin a perfectly good meal. The waitress came and took their orders and when she walked away, Greyson grabbed his aunt's hand, "Aunt Aubrey..."

The woman looked up and saw the genuine concern in his eyes and she let out a sigh, "I ruined my marriage." She said. "I cheated on him." She looked down after the admission.

Greyson's eyes went wide, he never saw his godmother as one to cheat on his godfather, but he could tell that there was a deeper root to it all. He squeezed her hand in reassurance that he wasn't going anywhere. Aubrey looked up hesitantly as her godson was showing her some much love in his eyes. She knew she screwed up things amongst her family, but she was glad that she seemingly had support from the man currently doing his bet to comfort her.

The two may not do emotions very well, but they had each other and that's what made Aubrey smile the most. What the lawyer didn't know is that the communications director was to spiraling in a way that she would never want him to.

* * *

Around lunch time, Chloe was sitting in her office working when she got a text message from Greyson. It wasn't very often that she got a text from him during the day, but when she did, she immediately stopped. It usually meant his depression and suicidal thoughts were kicking in.

 _Greyson: I know this is weird, but I'm outside your office and I need to talk to you._

Chloe slightly smiled as she got up and opened her door and was not expecting to see what she saw. Greyson's tie was loosened from his usual strict formal fitting tie, his shirt was messily tucked in instead of the usual nicely tucked, he was wearing his glasses instead of his contacts, his eyes were red from crying, and he had a nervous lip between her teeth. Chloe gently grabbed his hand and slowly pulled him into her office, locking the door behind her.

"What's wrong baby?" Chloe asked, leading him to the couch in her office, sitting him down, and pulling him into her. He curled deep into her embrace. "Talk to Mommy." She whispered.

"I had breakfast with Aunt Aubrey this morning," he said softly. "Well, second breakfast," he amended knowing that he had breakfast with his mom that morning. "And I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around everything," he said putting his head on his mother's chest. "She cheated on Uncle Jesse." He got out. "She- she-" Greyson began to cry.

Chloe pulled her son tighter into her, "Okay, okay," she said softly, "breathe, just breathe." The headmaster led the boy through some breathing exercises before he fell heavy against her. "I know this is hard for you," she said, "but you gotta take care of yourself baby." She kissed the top of his head, remembering the day that he placed in her arms for the first time. The way that his curious blue eyes looked back up at him. The way that he snuggled into her neck when she held him against her chest. The mother's mind then went to the night he almost committed suicide his freshman year of high school. Her mind goes back to the moment where he had a handful of pills and a bottle of Jack Daniels sitting next to their pool in the backyard, Beca found him there, he was going to get drunk while swallowing pills and then fall straight into the pool. The music producer caught him in time. Chloe then came back to present day where he was a dead weight against her, trying to wrap his head around his godparents getting a divorce because his godmother cheated on his godfather. "What are you thinking about?" She asked her firstborn.

He sighed and was quite for a long while, he didn't know what to say, he figured if he told the truth then his mom would get his dad and Beca involved and he didn't want that. However, he knew if he lied that the truth would eventually come out and that's not something that he wanted, so he decided on the former, "I wanna die." He said honestly. "First Hannah breaks up with me after five years, work is stressful, and now this? I can't do this anymore." Chloe's arm wrapped tight around him, "That's why I'm here. The senator sent me to you knowing my history with mental health. I can't do this anymore, Mommy." He murmured. "I need you."

Chloe pulled her phone out of her pocket and looked at her work schedule for the day to see if she had any meetings to cancel, she didn't. She remembered that she had planned to use today to get a bulk of paperwork done. She then sent an email from her phone to the entire administration, faculty, and staff saying that she was going to be out for the rest of the day before texting Emily, Brendan, and Abby that they needed to all go home together because she had an emergency to attend to. She then turned to the boy in her arms, "How'd you get here?" She asked.

"Uber." He said. "Didn't trust myself to drive."

Chloe nodded, gratefully, "Okay baby, let's go." She said, getting up to quickly pack her work belongings to work later that night at home.

Greyson slowly got up and stood waiting for his mom, "Where are we meeting my dad and Beca?" He asked knowing the protocol that the three put in place for him when it comes to this kind of stuff.

"The studio." Chloe said closing her briefcase and sending a text message to her wife and ex-fiancé with their code word of tornado in the three of their ongoing text message for this reason.

Chloe then led Greyson out to her car, her arm wrapped tightly around him. When they got to the car, she opened the door for him and got him settled before closing the door and going to the other side and getting in the driver's seat, receiving text messages from both Beca and Tom.

 _Beca: I'll be waiting in my office._

 _Tom: On my way._

 _Beca: I'll let security know that the three of you are coming._

Chloe smiled because the two people in this text message knew that these two get along because of the boy sitting in her passenger's seat. She knew that when Tom came back into their lives that Beca was skeptical of it all because she didn't want Chloe and Greyson hurt. The music producer and communications director may not have the closest of relationships, but Beca loved Greyson more than she could ever show.

* * *

Chloe and Tom pulled into spaces next to each other at the same time. The man got out his car first and greeted Chloe with a hug before going to the passenger's door and opening it for his son. Greyson gets out of the car and sees that his dad is in the suit that he wore to work that day and immediately felt bad. Tom was a strategic manager for a big company in Los Angeles, he had an important job and Greyson didn't like the fact that he pulled his dad away from that. Tom pulled the younger man in for a big hug and held him tightly against him. The three went inside and passed the security that Beca had set up for the safety and privacy of her artists. They stood in the elevator, Greyson standing between his parents. As the door opened to the floor where Beca's office was, he took a deep breath.

He started getting nervous when he heard Beca's voice, "I've been saying that track is missing something all week and I needed that fixed like yesterday." She called across the office.

"We're working on it," one of the other senior producers said.

" _Working on it_ and _fixing it_ are two different things, Sam. Max is _counting_ on us to get him his first grammy." Beca said coming out of her office walking to the doorway of Sam's.

"Don't worry, Bec." Sam said. "We'll figure it out, we _always_ do."

"Okay, but I need you to listen to it again. Figure out what it's missing." Beca said. "I'd like it down by tomorrow."

"You got it, boss." Sam said.

Beca turned around to see her wife, stepson, and stepson's father standing there, "Oh, hi guys." She said. "Let's go into my office." The music producer led the three into her office and locked the door behind her after shutting it. Greyson sat on the couch and leaned against his mom. Tom and Beca sat across from them, both with concerned looks on their faces. Chloe put an arm around him and held him tight. Beca saw this gesture and knew what was going on, the boy just found out a week and a half ago from his mom that his godparents were splitting up and she knew he had a second breakfast with Aubrey this morning, so the lawyer had to tell him what had happened, right? That she cheated on Jesse for reasons that no one can begin to understand. And to top everything off, the music producer knew that his girlfriend of five years that he was planning on marrying had broken up with him because _she_ cheated on him and got pregnant with the other man's child. This version of Greyson David Beale curled into his mother right in front of her was spiraling in a scary way. "Hey kiddo," she softly said. "Wanna tell us what's going on?"

Greyson got up because he needed space to think, he knew this question was going to be asked, but he didn't know how he was supposed to answer it. He remembers vaguely of pills and drinking next to the pool freshman year. He also vaguely remembers Beca saving him when he did fall into the pool. He was currently looking out a window seeing the skyline of Los Angeles, he had tears streaming down his face. Without turning back around he says, "I can't do this anymore." The three parents looked around at each other and before they could ask him to elaborate, he said, "I can't live in a body that fights to survive with a mind that tries to die." The three parents now looked around each other with genuine concern, "Why? Why does it have to be like this?" He rhetorically asked. "I can't do this."

Beca did something that she didn't normally do when it came to this kind of stuff, she got up and stood next to her stepson and wrapped an arm up and around his shoulders, "You remember when you came home from the psychiatric hospital freshman year and we told you that your life is worth living and that there's help out there for you?" Greyson nodded wiping the tears away with his left hand. "That's still true, kiddo." She said. "And your parents and I want to get you that help." Greyson shrugged Beca's embrace off and turned to see his mom and dad sitting there with concerned looks on their faces, he turned to his stepmother who showed an equal amount of concern. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a burst of anger came out of him, "Why now?" He yelled. "Where've you all been?"

The three parents looked around at each other before looking at the man, "What are you talking about, son?" Tom asked. "We've always been here. We didn't notice that anything was wrong."

"Yeah baby," Chloe said. "We would've intervened a lot sooner."

Greyson turned back to look out the window and he clenched his fists and released them and squared his shoulders, "I feel like I can't take much more." He said softer than he had been. "First Hannah cheats on me and gets pregnant and then breaks up with me. Then the senator tells me that she's running for president, which is cool, but stressful. Then I find out about Uncle Jesse and Aunt Aubrey splitting up from my mom. I haven't been sleeping or really eating. I just feel so sick to my stomach and all I can think about is that I just want this all to end." He started to sob, "I can't do this anymore. Everything feels so heavy? Why does everything feel so heavy?"

Beca wrapped arms around him and slid to the floor with him in her lap, she has seen him this vulnerable before, but she never felt the boldness and courage as she did in that moment. She rocked him back and forth, every once and awhile pressing a kiss to the top of his head. She looked up at Chloe and Tom with a hopeful smile because maybe things weren't okay right now, but they will eventually be alright again.

* * *

Greyson grabbed a tray with his name on it, his parents put him on a 72 hour hold in a psychiatric hospital. They even called the senator to let her know that he wouldn't be at work for the rest of the week and depending on his state getting out of the hospital, he maybe taking a few days off the following week. The senator was pleased that her communication director's parents were taking charge because in her mind he hadn't been well on a mental health level for awhile, which is why she sent him home to Chloe. He sat down with his tray and ate quietly, he didn't want to deal with any of the other patients. He drank his coffee in silence and ate about half of the food on his tray. He felt unbelievably guilty and he didn't want anything to do with this psych ward. He ate in silence, ignored the people who sat down around him. He looked at the clock and counted the hours he had been in this hell hole and realized it had been barely 24 hours. He still had 48 hours to go.

He sighed and wondered why life decided to treat _him_ like this and what he did to deserve it.

* * *

Jesse and Aubrey came to visit him during visiting hours after they got off of work that day. Aubrey, a civil rights lawyer, who worked primarily alongside the same senator that Greyson works for and other lobbyists and Jesse, a morning radio host on a local pop radio station, were both surprised to hear about his breakdown in Beca's office.

Greyson was sitting at the same table that he ate breakfast at and looked at his godparents, who were putting on a strong united front with concerned looks on their faces, "Hey champ," Jesse said. "How're you doing?"

Greyson, who was uncharacteristically slouching in his chair, messing with a paper cup that had water in it, sarcastically snapped back, "Doing fantastic." Jesse rolled his eyes, "You asked me how I was doing in a dining hall of a psych ward, Uncle Jesse."

Aubrey reached out and touched his hand, "I'm sorry that our conversation yesterday pushed you over, I just thought you deserved the truth." She said, taking her hand back and looking down.

Greyson saw the guilt written on his godmother's face and sighed, "It's not your fault, Aunt Aubrey." He said genuinely. "I've been spiraling for awhile. I just didn't take care of myself, I promise, it's not your fault."

Aubrey looked at Jesse who was looking at his wife in concern. Sure, he was rightfully angry with her, but he still loved and cared for her. The radio host grabbed the lawyer's hand and softly caressed it with his thumb, "He's right, Bree." The man said. "It's not your fault."

Greyson looked at the handhold that his godparents were in, he visibly swallowed thinking of what he would feel when their divorce was final. He then looked at how they were looking at each other. He then took a deep breath, "I began spiraling when Hannah told me that she was pregnant with another man's child." He said making them snap their heads at him. Sure, he had told them that the two had broken up, but he never said why, "I had the ring picked out and everything, I was planning the biggest, most romantic way to propose to her. Then she told me that she had slept with her high school ex-boyfriend and I began to spiral." He roughly rubbed his face and said, "Then Senator Taylor told us that she was running for president and I initially thought, _cool, distraction._ And then," he sighed, "just when the campaign becomes stressful, just when I feel like everything is starting to slowly crumble, my _mom_ tells me that my godparents are splitting up and I know everyone feels bad about that, but yesterday when I found out the reason why, I started thinking, _what more could be put on my plate?_ And then I go to work and my god it was so hard to work that Senator Taylor sent me home to my mom. And then I end up in Beca's office with all three of my parents and I begin to wonder if any of this is worth it. Now, I'm here," he gestured to the surroundings, "sitting in a psych ward trying to get better. Trying not to lose my shit, talking with social workers about why I'm here, what led me here, and all I feel is heavy." He looks at his aunt and gently touches her hand, "It's _not_ your fault, Aunt Aubrey. I promise. I'm going to get better, whether or not, you two stay together, I am hellbent on getting better."

* * *

Greyson was being discharged from the hospital 48 hours later and both his mom and dad were there waiting for him. Just like they were when he got out of the adolescent psychiatric hospital all those years ago. Tom wrapped a loose arm around his neck and Chloe held his hand and duffle bag. They didn't know how this all was going to unfold, but as Beca pulled up with the car and Tom helped his son get into the car, Greyson knew that it could only go up from here.

* * *

 **A/n:** Annnd the angst has begun... I'm not going from oldest to youngest, so you'll be surprised which Mitchell-Beale is up next!


End file.
